One or more computers in an autonomous vehicle (or self-driving car) can be programmed to navigate the vehicle based on vehicle sensor data and map data. The vehicle computers may rely on three-dimensional (3D) map data, including e.g., “point cloud” data generated from LIDAR sensor data, to navigate the vehicle to a destination. 3D map data typically include large quantities of data. These large quantities of sensor data need to be stored, processed, and/or transmitted via communication networks. Current systems and methods for addressing memory storage that affect data transmission bandwidth are lacking in efficiency and effectiveness. Therefore, it is a problem to be able to store and transmit 3D map data without exceeding current technical bandwidth and/or storage and processing constraints of existing technology.